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As a business owner, you know what it’s like to lie awake at 2 a.m. Maybe it has happened when you are excited and full of new ideas for your business. More often, it’s because you are worried about issues you will face the next day. Sometimes, it’s because you just woke up with the solution to a problem. I’ve experienced all those emotions about my businesses over the years. Awake at 2 o’clock? is where I share them with you, and hopefully help with answers that will let you sleep.
John F. Dini, CExP, CEPA
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Small business owners are the Hunters of the 21st century. We are 3% of the US population, and yet we create over half of all American jobs. As Hunters, we may not be inclined to manage by the numbers or stick to systems. Are you a Hunter or a Farmer?
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How prepared are you to exit your company?
The Assessment breaks down the four major categories of exit readiness; Finance, Planning, Operations and Revenue/Profit.
Tag Archives: employee performance
Employee Motivation: The Effect of the Economy
In 1979, President Jimmy Carter delivered his “Crisis of Confidence” speech, commonly referred to as his “Malaise Speech” although he never actually used that word. To a country reeling from stagflation and an oil crisis, it was an additional blow to … Continue reading
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Management and Teachers: Accountability Requires Authority
In Chicago, the city and the teachers’ union are approaching an agreement. Interestingly, neither side said that the strike was over wages. (According to NPR, the average teacher makes just over $76,000 a year, and will receive a raise of … Continue reading
One Response to Management and Teachers: Accountability Requires Authority
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Employ People; Don’t Adopt Them
I cringe when a business owner tells me “Our company is just like a family.” I have a family, and thankfully my business is nothing like them. Family members have the right to unconditional love. They can make mistakes (and … Continue reading
2 Responses to Employ People; Don’t Adopt Them
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Great read and so true
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I agree. Great read
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Computer Technology: Curse You, Bill Gates!
Every business is held in thrall to its computer technology. In most white-collar environments a computer crash comes with the added expense of employees sitting dumbly at their stations, unable to function. When a function of our business becomes a core … Continue reading
3 Responses to Computer Technology: Curse You, Bill Gates!
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Your rant shows the importance of the move to “the cloud” which, if it delivers on its promises, will make the laptop or desktop about as important as a telephone…simply a means of establishing a link to your software programs, your files, etc.
Once everyone is in “the cloud” all we have to worry about is just exactly who is this new “big brother” that we have invited into our businesses, our homes and our innermost thoughts?
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Computers, Internet & Technology = Enabling faster decision making and faster errors in today’s need it now marketplace.
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I took Fortran when I was in college. I would submit my card deck to the people who ran the mainframe computer, and if I was lucky would get the results in 4 hours. Generally, the results indicated that I had missed a period and I had to do it all over again. So I think that we’ve made some progress since those days in the ’70’s.
That said, I agree that more effort should be spent on stability and ease of use and less on adding gee whiz features. I currently have a color printer that gives me an error message that is meaningless and refuses to be fixed. So it’s a piece of junk — it shouldn’t be that way.
Cars have had 100 years to get better. My first car was a 1971 Toyota Corolla that had burned through its engine valves at 28,000 miles and had rusted through the fenders before it was 2 years old — when I disposed of it by totaling it and luckily not myself. So now we pay 5 times more for a superior product that lasts 5 times longer. Computer prices have actually gone down, and the product is far superior to what it used to be. That said, more work to be done.
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Employees aren’t Partners
Many of my clients are recovering from the recession. They are running lean, and have restored their profitability, even if at lower revenues than prior to 2008. Those that had to reduce or freeze employee compensation are seeking ways to … Continue reading
3 Responses to Employees aren’t Partners
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This is an excellent article and I completely agree with the concept that only Exectuive Mgmt should profit share. Incentive based pay for the employees is a good practice, but needs to have flexibility to ebb and flow with the needs of the business being met first and foremost.
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John, I disagree. I used profit sharing with my employees for 15 years. Each employee in my company contributed to the profits of the company. We were a maufacturing company and everyone contributed, not just the managers. We did set up a system whereby each employee’s share of the profit was based on compensation, years of service, and a performance factor. We met monthly with all employees and reviewed our financials with them. They knew where they could help by controlling expenses and where they could cut costs. they knew the cost of the materials that they were using in the process and could increase the yield and productivity of the operation. When the company was sold the employees were given over $500,000 to be dived up according to the previous criteria. After 25 years they are still there.
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That sounds lile a great system, Larry. I note you said “performance” was a key criteria. I have absolutely no problem with using company profitability as a funding scale for incentive programs. My piece criticised companies that distribute profits as an entitlement, without defining what individuals need to do to earn their share.
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The grievance is whether 40% or less of theteacher’s performance review is based on student performance. If your job is to teach, then it seems to me ridiculous to think there is a method of evaluation that doesn’t include student performance! You make good points here, but there must be some accountability to educate your students. In your private school example, I assume these teachers must still educate their students and performance is a measure of their success. Just because the students behave, it doesn’t mean the teachers are effective.